Acetylene-gas generator



,(No Model.)

E-. E. SHULER. .AGETYLENE GAS GENERATOR.

Patented June 21,1898.

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ATENT ACETYLENE-GAS GENERATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 605,926, dated June 21, 1898. Application filed October 6, 1897. SerialNo. 654,254. (No model.)

To all whom. it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ELMER ELswoRTH SHULER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Havelock, in the county of Lancaster and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Acetylene- Gas Generators; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a novel form of generator for acetylene gas; and the object is to provide a simple, efficient, and automatic device of this character.

To this end the invention consists in the construction, combination, and arrangement of the several parts of the device, as will be hereinafter more fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawing the same reference characters indicate the same parts of the invention. Y

The figure in the drawing is a longitudinal view of a generator embodying my invention.

1 represents a cylindrical tank open at the top and provided with a concave bottom 2', thewhole supported on suitable legs 3 3.

4 represents a cylindrical drum mounted concentrically within said tank, so as to have a free vertical movement therein, and which is insured by the guide eyes 5' 5 on the upper end of the drum encompassing the vertical parallel guide-rods 6 6, fixed to the opposite sides of the tank. These guide-eyes 5 5 are provided with set-screws 5 5,jby means of which the drum may be sustained in an elevated position when desired. The upper ends of these guide-rods are connected bya transverse brace 7, which serves the double purpose of bracing the rods 6 6 and limiting the upward movement of the cylinder.

8 represents a conical diaphragm fixed in the lower end of the tank 1, and its lower end terminates in a vertical pipe 9, which extends through the concave bottom 2, and its projecting end is provided with a slide-gate 10. A suitable receptacle may be placed under the gate to receive the spent carbid, or the gatemay be connected direct with thesewer. The lower end of the drum' 4 terminates in a correspondingly-shaped conical bottom 11, provided with a central orifice 12.

13 represents a conical diaphragm fixed in the upper end of the drum, and it is provided with a central orifice 14, which receives a ball or float valve 15.

16 represents the reticulated carbid-basket, fixed in the upper end of the drum, above the diaphragm l3, and it is of novelconstruction, being formed with a reduced cylindrical bot tom 17, a cylindrical pocket 18, arranged above said bottom, and a series of annular concentric shelves '19 19, arranged in different planes. p

20 represents the top of the drum, provided with a removable screw-cap 2l,through which the calcium carbid is supplied to the generator, and with a vent-cock 22. A nipple 23 is fixed in said top 20, and from it afiexible pipe 24 leads to a vertical pipe 25, fixed to the tank 1, its lowerend communicating with the chamber 26, formed in the tank between the conicaldiaphragm 8 and the bottom 2. The vertical pipe 25 is providedwith a cut-off valve 27 and the bottom of the tank with a dripcock 28. I i

29 represents the discharge-pipe, leading from the chamber 26 through the small storage gas-holder 30 and terminating in a vertical pipe 31, opening above the water-level in the larger storage gas-holder'32.

33 and 34 represent forwardly opening check-valves arranged in the discharge-pipe between the tank 1 and the smallergas-holder 8 5 30 and the latter and the larger gas-holder 32, and 35 represents the service-pipe from which the gas is drawn for consumption, it being connected to the discharge-pipe between the check-valve 34 and the gas-holder 32. A vertical pipe 36 extends upwardly from the discharge-pipe 29 and terminates abovethe water-level inside of the holder 30.

The drum 37 of the holder 32 is provided with the guide-eyes 38 38, which encompass the guide-rods 39 39, fixed to the holder, the upper ends of said rods being connected by a cross-brace 40 to brace the rods and limit the upward movement of the drum.

41 41 represent transverse pins r'emovably secured in suitable orifices in" the guide-rods, and they normally limit the downward inovement of the dru m-that is to say, in the ordinary working of the generator the guide-eyes 38 38 have a vertical movement on the guiderods between said pins 41 41 and the crossbrace 40.

The holder 30 is provided with a lug 42, and 43 is a lockinglever pivoted to the drum 44, which engages the lug when the drum is depressed to its full extent in the holder, and 45 represents a handle on the top of the drum to manipulate it when desired.

The operation of the device is as follows: WVater is first placed in the tank 1 to the proper level and the drum 4 raised until the orifice 14 in the bottom of the conical diaphragm 13 is above the water-level, the ballvalve closing said orifice and the drum supported in this position by the set-screws 5 5. The screw-cap 21 is then removed, and the calcic carbid is then evenly distributed over.

the basket 16. The cap is then replaced, the valve 22 opened, the valve 27 closed, and the set-screws 5 5 turned to release the drum, which then settles down in the water, the ballvalve meantime rising to allow the water to come in contact with the lowermost charge of carbid, and the generation of the gas immediately commences, and after the air has been expelled and the aqueous vapor, somewhat resembling steam, escapes at the vent-cock- 22 the latter is closed and the valve 27 opened. The gas now passes into the condenser and cooling-chamber 26 and from that through the discharge-pipe 29 to the holders 30 32 and the service-pipe 35, and the supply of gas will automatically continue as long as there is any unslaked carbid in the basket. Of course it will be understood that when the gas is being generated faster than it is consumed and the holder32 is filled the pressure of the gas in the drum 4 will cause it to rise, not only lifting the carbid-basket from the water, but also carrying the diaphragm 13 as well, and as the ball-valve 15 closes the orifice 14 in said diaphragm the aqueous vapor arising from the water is effectually cut off from the carbid in the basket, and any small particles of carbid which may become detached are prevented from falling in the water. Thus the generation of gas practically ceases and is only resumed again when the consumption has been sufficient to relieve the pressure in the drum andallow the basket to descend, so as to present a new supply of carbid to the action of the water, thus raising the drum to accommodate its capacity and maintaining a uniform pressure at the burners.

Should the generator be exhausted and the burners grow dim, indicating low pressure holder 30 is now raised, which acts as a pump and draws ofi the gas remaining in the generator and cooling-chamber. The generator is now slushed out, a' fresh charge of water and carbid added,and the operation continued as in the first place. The drum of the small holder is now depressed to force its gas into the larger holder, which raises the drum of the latter, and the pins 41 41 replaced, as before, to maintain a reserve supply of gas in case of the exhaustion of the generator.

Although I have specifically described the construction and relative arrangement of the several elements of my invention, I do not desire. to be confined to the same, as such changes or modifications may be made as clearly fall within the scope of my invention without departing from the spirit thereof.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and useful, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, 1s

1. An acetylene-gas generator, comprising the stationary tank 1, in combination with the movable drum 4 concentrically mounted within said tank, the conical diaphragm 13 fixed in the upper end of said drum, and provided with the orifice 14, the ball-float 15 adapted to close said orifice, and the carbidbasket 16 arranged in said drum above said diaphragm, as and for the purpose set forth.

2. An acetylene-gas generator, comprising the tank 1 provided with the concave bottom 2, the conical diaphragm 8 fixed in the lower end of said tank so as to form an annular chamber 26, and termimating in a pipe 9 extending through the bottom 2 and the gate 10 fixed to its projecting end, in combination with the drum 4, having a closed top, a carbid-receptacle located in said drum, and a pipe connecting the upper end of said drum with the chamber 26, as and for the purpose set forth.

3. An acetylene-gas generator, comprising the tank 1 provided with the concave bottom 2, the conical diaphragm 8 fixed in the lower end of said tank so as to form an annular chamber 26, and terminating in a pipe 9 extending through the bottom 2 and the gate 10 fixed to its projecting end, in combination with the drum 4, having a closed top, and a conical bottom 11, provided with a central orifice 12, a carbid-receptacle located in said drum, and a pipe connecting the upper end of said drum with the chamber26, as and for the purpose set forth.

4. An acetylene-gas generator, comprising the cylindrical tank 1 formed with the concave bottom 2, provided with the drip-cock 28, the conical diaphragm 8 fixed in the lower end of said tank, so as to form an annular condensing and cooling chamber for the gas, and provided with an outlet-pipe 9, extending through the bottom 2 and terminating in a gate-valve l0,and the vertical parallel guiderods 6, 6, fixed to the upper end of said tank and connected at their upper ends by the transverse brace 7, in combination with the concentric drum 4 forined with the converging bottom 11 provided with the central ori- IIO cured to the top 20 of said drum, the flexible pipe 24 leading from said top and the fixed pipe 25 leading from the cooling-chamber 26 and provided with the valve 27 and commu- 15 nicating with said flexible pipe 24, as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereofI hereunto affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

'ELMER ELSWORTH SHULER.

Witnesses:

H. A. HOSKING, J. L. BIDDLESOM. 

